How Eve Failed, Jesus Succeed, and Evangelicals Loved the World

Lusts, Pride, and Giving into Temptation

^“Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God continues to live forever” 1 John 2:15-16 (NASB).

I couldn’t sleep. I tossed and turned on my little couch bed in the hotel room. I was on my daughter’s eighth grade trip to Washington DC. The girls I chaperoned breathed peacefully on the other side of the desk partition, but my mind wouldn’t stop. The combination of the podcasts I’d listened to on our thirteen hour drive, the monuments I’d just seen celebrating the founding of our country, and the knowledge that well-meaning believers were falling for the familiar lies of Christian Nationalism kept me awake. As I laid there this phrase kept running through my mind: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.

I thought of Jesus. He didn’t fall for the tricks of the evil one. I wondered if his temptations lined up with these natural inclinations of broken human hearts. It was the middle of the night and I was only half awake, but the next morning I did a little digging. I found the story of Jesus’ temptations in Luke 4:1-13. The story opens with the devil coming to Jesus in the wilderness after Jesus had fasted for forty days and was hungry.

Jesus’ temptations started with something that sounds an awful lot like the lusts or desires of the flesh. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Jesus quickly rejected the devil’s lies with scripture and answered, “It is written, ‘Man does not live by bread alone.’”

Photo by Wesley Gibbs

In the second temptation, the devil appealed to a desire for power as he offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world. They must have looked pretty attractive from the top of that mountain. I wondered if this was something like the lusts or desires of the eyes. And he said to him, “To you I will grant this whole realm—and the glory that goes along with it…if you will worship me, all this will be yours.” Again, Jesus rejected the offer and the lies. “It is written, ‘You are to worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’”

For the final temptation, the devil took Jesus to the top of the temple and suggested he perform a sensational feat. “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ and ‘with their hands they will lift you up, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” It would have been a spectacle that made the crowds take notice. It would have been a miracle proving that Jesus was someone special. Is this the boastful pride of life?Instead of giving in, Jesus again responded quickly with scripture, “It is said, ‘You are not to put the Lord your God to the test.’”

When I googled it during my early morning coffee, I noticed that I was not the first person to connect these two passages of Scripture. Others had also noticed similarities. Interestingly, some people also connected Genesis 3:6.

“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it” Genesis 3:6 (NIV).

• “Good for food” is very similar to “desires of the flesh” and “make these stones into bread.”

• “Pleasing to the eye” reminds me of “desires of the eyes” and “all these realms and their glory.”

• “Desirable for gaining wisdom” could connect with “pride of life” and “show off so people know you are special.”

It’s obviously not a perfect correlation, but it was close enough to make me continue pondering. These seem to be the same old temptations and lies that humans have continually fallen for throughout the history of the world. I love how scripture does this—how we can find and follow common themes in the whole Bible. When I find one like this, I sit up and take notice.

Adam and Eve failed the test. They stayed and listened to the lies of the evil one, they twisted God’s words themselves, and ultimately they chose to follow the devil’s suggestion and eat fruit from the one tree God told them to avoid. The consequences were devastating. They continue to be devastating.

Despite being exhausted and depleted, Jesus refused to listen to the devil. He shot lies down with truth and rejected the devil’s offers. Ultimately the devil gave up and left him until an opportune time (Luke 4:13).

Jesus’ whole life was antithetical to these temptations. He was not at all materialistic—no home, no immediate family or romantic relationships, and minimal possessions. On the flip side, Jesus was accused of being a drunkard and glutton, so he was not controlled by asceticism either.

Although Jesus had all the power in the universe, he rejected the allure of earthly power. He welcomed outcasts and chose to eat and drink with social misfits. When people misunderstood his mission and tried to make him king by force, Jesus slipped away. He had absolutely no interest in earthly kingdoms.

Jesus also didn’t seek spectacle or sensationalism. The “boastful pride of life” was a better description of his religious opponents. Jesus was humble. He didn’t need to show off his intelligence, although he astounded people with his wisdom. Jesus didn’t perform on command, but every miracle had a purpose—to show us the Father. Jesus was nothing we expected, but everything we’ve ever wanted.

Photo by Edward Cisneros

“Do not love the world nor the things in the world…For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” 1 John 2:15 (NASB).

All of this brings me to American evangelical culture. As I’ve said before, I am still a global evangelical. I love the Word of God. I believe in a personal relationship with Jesus that changes our lives from the inside out. I want to tell other people about the transformation that knowing Jesus brings.

But I can hold these beliefs and also speak directly and prophetically about the American evangelical moment. I can offer criticism and correction. And I hope that as someone still inside, my words will hold a weight that they might not if I were on the outs.

Like Eve, and Adam with her, American Evangelicalism has failed the test. We’ve chosen to love the things of the world. We’ve embraced the lusts of the flesh, welcomed the lusts of the eyes, and linked arms with the boastful pride of life. Now we are facing the devastating consequences.

I could keep writing paragraphs, but instead I’m going to make lists of ways I see these broken partnerships taking place.

Lusts of the Flesh:

• Mega-church culture, Christian influencers and celebrities, capitalistic ventures, the evangelical industry, obsession with money and possessions, rampant prosperity gospel preachers/followers, and more.

Lusts of the Eyes:

• All of the political power plays, the long-game takeover of the SBC, focus on moralism and making people behave like we want them to, Christian Nationalism, Doug Wilson and his Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches denomination, dominionist theology like the Seven Mountain Mandate, etc.

Boastful Pride of Life:

• The arrogance among many American evangelicals, a certainty that we are always right, bad science or rejection of science, a refusal to critique anyone within our fold, the apologetics culture, dualistic, black and white thinking, desiring an answer for everything, white supremacy, racism, patriarchy, and more.

Whew! I’m exhausted writing this and I can imagine that you are probably exhausted reading it. The problems feel bigger than anything we can solve. We only have so much influence, so what can we possibly do?

I found a quote by

Examining Moscow

—a group that operates with the purpose of exposing Doug Wilson and his corrupt ideas—today at the end of a reel that I want to share. In response to the question of what do we do, they said,

“A grassroots effort is what is needed. A thousand tiny fires. Join the resistance.”

A thousand tiny fires. That statement reminded me of the When the Wolves Came podcast.

Ruth Braunstein

finished her six episode show by asking her listeners to do their one thing.

“Everyone doesn’t have to do everything. Most of the people in this story, they’re not doing everything. They are doing their one thing…It will take many people, like you, deciding to start with their one thing, sending up their own pro-democracy signal flare and connecting with others.”

So here we are. A thousand tiny fires. For real! Somehow this Substack newsletter of mine has over one and a half thousand people who have chosen to get it sent to their email inbox, and over two thousand people are following along in the app. That’s two thousand tiny fires. Two thousand people doing their one thing. And that’s just my little Substack group. I’ve met wonderful people lately who are doing their own one thing and have thousands of tiny fires inspired by their words and actions. God loves to use small things. Look at scripture. That theme is everywhere.

I believe the fire will spread as we point out errors, repent of the religiosity in our own hearts, dig into scripture for ourselves to discover what is truth and what is tradition, and run after the real Jesus who delights in hanging out with misfits and social outcasts.

Our crazy world does not surprise God. Let’s be a part of what he is already doing! Hold onto hope, friends. It’s not over yet. I’m writing a parable next week about wolves in the sheep pen and stubborn sheep who won’t listen. Stay tuned.

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